Getting Started Flying UAVs

CNN PRODUCER NOTEBrent Foster got hooked on flying Unmanned Aerial Vehicles about two years ago. These days, the former photojournalist for the LA Times and other publications has turned his love aerial photography into a potential career in the commercial sector. When he started learning how to fly the remote control devices, he found lots of technical information, but not what he was looking for. So, he created his own UAV how-to video earlier this year.

“I really wanted to make that video in particular for other people who are photographers and filmmakers first, who are trying to figure out what comes in with adding aerial cinema to your work,” said the Canadian. “There was a lot of techy video and a lot of information, but nothing that was really simplified it to say, ‘Here’s what you need to do not to make a mistake when you start to fly.’”

His best tips for UAV newcomers? Start with a cheap, toy drone and learn how to fly that first, even without a camera. Once you know how to operate that, you can fly a larger model with a camera. And, make sure you can fly the aircraft in manual mode – that will save you if run into a problem with GPS failure, he said.
- zdan, CNN iReport producer

When I started flying my camera, there seemed to be very little out there that really covered the basics of getting up and running safely with a quadcopter.

This video will introduce you to the basics of flying a UAV such as the DJI Phantom. We cover the basics of getting your quadcopter up and running. The video covers home lock, course lock, GPS, attitude mode, and preferred flying methods to get the best footage possible. This video is perfect for photographers and cinematographers getting into flying who want to avoid a few common mistakes when getting started.

We fly a custom made Phantom from FlyingCameras in B.C, Canada with a Zenmuse Gimbal and GoPro3+

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